University of Florence Natural History Museum
University of Florence Natural History Museum
University of Florence Natural History Museum
4
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
The exhibition is dedicated to the fossils of large mammals, molluscs and plants that illustrate the history of paleontology and are precious witnesses of the Earth's past.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
133 reviews
Excellent
59
Very good
52
Average
15
Poor
3
Terrible
4
Susan P
5 contributions
Jun 2023
A pleasant surprise! My husband and daughter were on a day tour to the coast and I was looking for something to do. As a science teacher, I was intrigued by the idea of seeing a Natural History Museum in Florence. This museum is a hidden gem! I spent several hours roaming and thoroughly enjoying my visit. The museum is mostly in Italian but if you know your science and geology then it does not matter- the terms are easily translated. The paleontological specimens were in a great variety and in great shape. The section on the evolution of the horse is fantastic. The middle section that has the fossils and rocks lined up in the Earth History order were great! And that whale section is incredible. And an added bonus is the fantastic dinosaur sitting right outside the front door. A great experience not to be missed when in Florence.
Written June 28, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wanderer
Dublin230 contributions
Jun 2023 • Family
We were on a visit to Florence with a 5 year old who is fascinated by fossils and dinosaurs so this was ideal. It’s a fascinating place with a great collection (including one of only three complete mammoth fossils in the world) which will be enjoyed by kids and adults alike and very quiet so no queues. Very enjoyable overall.
Written June 20, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Harry G
Liverpool, UK173 contributions
Aug 2019 • Family
Worth a visit. Welcome diversion for children in Florence. Aged 4 and 6, there is only so much culture they can handle! Only 13 euro for family ticket and pretended half the exhibits were dinosaurs!
Written August 9, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LSQRD1
Kent, OH899 contributions
Mar 2019 • Solo
To begin with, the University of Florence has several museums that are all in different areas. There are two 'natural history' museums if you want to use that terminology. The first is La Specola which over by Pitti Palace--La Specola is the one with the taxidermy and anatomical waxes. The other one..which is what this review and attraction is...focuses on paleontology. In other words, most of the reviews for the current attraction are for the paleontology museum along with the photos. If you are interesting in La Specola, specifically search for that attraction. The university also has an anthropology museum.
On my visit, the mineralogy museum seemed to be closed but I enjoyed the smallish paleo museum. The collection of ice age specimens is good and they have some local specimens. Most of the museum is very traditional but they have a new display which is very well done of a fossil whale. I had the place to myself so it was a very pleasant experience.
On my visit, the mineralogy museum seemed to be closed but I enjoyed the smallish paleo museum. The collection of ice age specimens is good and they have some local specimens. Most of the museum is very traditional but they have a new display which is very well done of a fossil whale. I had the place to myself so it was a very pleasant experience.
Written April 13, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mike S
Washington DC, DC536 contributions
Jan 2012 • Solo
You may not like stuffed animals. Don't go. Or dissected human bodies, flayed open to see all the parts. Don't go. But what an amazing collection. I finally saw my first duck-billed platypus. And a Galapagos penguin. And, oh, the things I learned about the human body.
Written January 30, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Phil_lsa
Lytham St Anne's, UK133 contributions
Mar 2019 • Couples
I do enjoy wandering around a natural history museum. This one, is one of the old school types with cabinet full of exhibits. Entrance fee is very reasonable and I highly recommend the €3 upgrade to do the guided tour of the wax medical exhibit, it was fascinating to see the intricate wax models of differing parts of the human anatomy, which are so detailed. Also it was nice to get away for the crowds for a little while.
Written March 18, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alan J
Gosport116 contributions
Oct 2018 • Couples
My wife and a couple of friends decided to visit this museum on the way back to our hotel.
What a marvellous collection, especially the anatomical wax model section.
We were lucky to arrive just as the guided tour took place, very keen young man who enthused about the exhibits. These models were all made around 1750+ and are a MUST for anyone of the medical profession to visit.
Cost was E3 for museum (concession) and a further E3 for the wax museum.
We can not recommend this museum highly enough.
What a marvellous collection, especially the anatomical wax model section.
We were lucky to arrive just as the guided tour took place, very keen young man who enthused about the exhibits. These models were all made around 1750+ and are a MUST for anyone of the medical profession to visit.
Cost was E3 for museum (concession) and a further E3 for the wax museum.
We can not recommend this museum highly enough.
Written October 28, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Anne H
Saint Louis, MO4 contributions
Dec 2018
This is a museum of human anatomy created from wax. If you have any medical interest, this should be a destination. The details in these 18th century pieces were incredible.
Written February 26, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
12gotoperu
Huntington, WV266 contributions
Dec 2017 • Solo
Not sure why we're calling the Natural History museum. I guess that's what it is but I like Italian names and that's how it was listed in my guidebook. Anyway, I also remember being bored to death when I visited the Natural History Museum in Chicago (many, MANY years ago so it may be better now) but I certainly wasn't bored here. And the children that were there didn't seem to be either. It's no comparison to Chicago's or other bigger cities I suppose but it sure had a lot of skeletons and "Pietro" a complete skeleton of an ancestor of the elephant found in Tuscany! I read that it was discovered just below the surface while a field was being prepared for grape vines. It is 1.5 million years old, give or take a couple of years. :) The whole exhibit was well thought out I think and I noticed that almost all their identification cards had English. I also noticed that they had nicknames for their biggest skeletons which was fun. The one mentioned above is "Pietro". The final stop is in a relatively new exhibit and contains the remains of the entire skeleton of an ancient whale or ancestor of a whale. It was discovered in 2007 in I think a tidal basin or a field that had been a tidal basin. Anyway, there it was, an entire skeleton and they somehow managed to get it excavated and installed in a beautiful room that is filled with all kind of information, shells, etc., There is a rolling video that tells the story and it shows on two screens, one with English subtitles. I was so impressed with all the effort they've put into this. One somehow tends to think of Italy as cathedrals, statues and paintings all done back in the 12-1500's but people today are creating wonderful exhibits also. If you have children, I think they would love this.
Written December 3, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Manuela L
Luxembourg City, Luxembourg6,623 contributions
May 2015 • Friends
There are a big collection about more as 25.000 of mineralogical pieces of all the world;
and Cosimo I begins with this collection; a very inreresting collection of about 5000
presentations of Elba and extraordinary Gemstones, a Topaze of Brasil of 150 kg and also many Turmaline of Elba. Very of interess the Geology & Paleontology section. If you have, like me , an interest or passion for stones, it's great to visit.
and Cosimo I begins with this collection; a very inreresting collection of about 5000
presentations of Elba and extraordinary Gemstones, a Topaze of Brasil of 150 kg and also many Turmaline of Elba. Very of interess the Geology & Paleontology section. If you have, like me , an interest or passion for stones, it's great to visit.
Written April 15, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
È aperto la domenica pomeriggio?
Written December 29, 2019
È aperto la domenica pomeriggio?
Written December 29, 2019
Do I need to buy the ticket in advance?
Written May 13, 2018
SMA UNIFI
Florence, Italy
Hi TFung!
You can buy the ticket at the desk.
More information on the website of the museum, where you can find also our scheduled events
Enjoy your visit!
Communication Staff
Written May 14, 2018
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